North Carolina State University Athletics
Bullard Continues to Learn as New Season Begins
8/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Rifle
When junior Samantha Bullard tells someone she’s on the NC State rifle team, she gets quite a few confused looks and questions.
“They ask if I toss rifles,” said Bullard. “I don’t know if it’s because I’m a girl or because they don’t think of rifle and shooting as a sport. I tell them we shoot competitively, and it takes people some time to get used to the idea.”
Even her mother was a little puzzled when Bullard showed an interest in the sport before she entered high school. The Christmas before her ninth grade year, Bullard’s father planned to get her younger brother, Addison, a BB gun. When Bullard’s mother asked what she would want, Bullard said she wanted a BB gun as well. Her mother thought Bullard was joking, but her father eventually gave in to the idea, and Bullard’s rifle career got its start.
“One day my mom came to pick us up from my dad’s and I told her to watch what I was going to do,” said Bullard. “I put some cans in a pyramid, started from the top, and picked each one of them off.”
After showing off her skills, her mother was so impressed she contacted the athletics director at Lee County High School, where Bullard would be attending in the fall. The director then put Bullard in contact with the high school’s rifle team head coach, who began having her work on basic shooting skills. Bullard competed for her high school team for three years and served as team captain. During her senior year of high school, she joined the Sir Walter Gun Club based in Creedmoor, N.C.
Bullard has practiced a lot on her own over her seven years of shooting, but it was her mentors, teammates, and even competitors who helped her become the shooter she is today. While in high school, Bullard competed at Camp Perry in the smallbore competition, and participated in a mentor match. Her mentor turned out to be Mike Anti, a four-time Olympic competitor, who is currently competing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. By working with Anti, Bullard improved her smallbore skills and was ready for competition when she came to NC State in 2006.
Arriving in Raleigh, Bullard became part of a team that had already developed strong relationships. It only took her a week to feel right at home with her teammates, and the relationship with them has helped Bullard progress into a more successful shooter. Last year, when only four people remained on the team, Bullard banded together with the other female team members, senior Noel Keck and fellow junior Katie Siegert.
“We had to room together every night we were on the road, so we became real close, real fast,” said Bullard. “We’re like Charlie’s Angels. All three of us are different, but we just work well together. All you have to do is ask for help, and everyone is more than willing.”
Even though Bullard has made her fair share of mistakes, including an accidental shot at the Great American Rifle Conference championships in which she scored a zero after her finger slipped, she learns and grows as a competitor from them.
Bullard also credits her improvement and success not only to her teammates and her coaches, but to her competitors as well. When the Pack travels to The Citadel, the two teams often go have dinner together, and even though they are competitors, the rival teams have become friends.
“[Shooting] is very competitive, but everyone is so willing to help,” said Bullard. “If there’s a problem, if you’re trying to get over a hump and you can’t figure out why something isn’t working, anybody, from your competitor to the person beside you, could say something like, why don’t you try clicking up, or move your arm forward.’ No one seems to feel like it’s a competition.”
The competition has become tougher for Bullard and the rest of the NC State rifle team. The Pack has competed in the Southeastern Air Rifle Conference for many years, and has won three conference titles, including the past two seasons. In Bullard’s freshman year, the Pack joined the GARC, a more competitive group of schools. A majority of the GARC schools have the advantage of newer facilities and automated targets, a very different situation from NC State. With the Pack only having four competitors this past season, there was no room for error in the GARC matches.
“For a team like us that scrapes by, we do really well in the SEARC because it’s all about doing the best that you can,” said Bullard. “In the GARC it’s doing better than everybody else.”
Bullard is looking forward to the new season beginning Oct. 4th with a match against Army and The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. Bullard, Keck, and Siegert will join up once again to lead the Pack to yet another successful season. Seven newcomers will be joining the team: sophomore transfer Meredith Manning, and freshmen Pierce Ellis, Rachel Jones, Christopher Melochick, Mark Nations, James Patterson, and Matthew George Yeatman round out the squad.
As to whether or not Bullard plans on competing in rifle after she graduates in two years, she’s uncertain. She is majoring in biological science and wants to pursue a physician’s assistant degree.
“I enjoy rifle, and I love the people involved in it,” said Bullard. “Not just within our conferences, but in the Sir Walter Gun Club and at the Holly Springs range. After I’m done with college whether I continue or not depends on where I’ll be and what I’ll be doing.”
One thing is for certain: Bullard loves her time here at NC State.
“My mom came here, and I’ve been a fan since I was little,” said Bullard. “I could do the Wolfpack symbol when I was little. I sang the fight song and had the cheerleader outfit. It’s just where I wanted to be. This is home to me. I love it here. Everything is perfect.”
“They ask if I toss rifles,” said Bullard. “I don’t know if it’s because I’m a girl or because they don’t think of rifle and shooting as a sport. I tell them we shoot competitively, and it takes people some time to get used to the idea.”
Even her mother was a little puzzled when Bullard showed an interest in the sport before she entered high school. The Christmas before her ninth grade year, Bullard’s father planned to get her younger brother, Addison, a BB gun. When Bullard’s mother asked what she would want, Bullard said she wanted a BB gun as well. Her mother thought Bullard was joking, but her father eventually gave in to the idea, and Bullard’s rifle career got its start.
“One day my mom came to pick us up from my dad’s and I told her to watch what I was going to do,” said Bullard. “I put some cans in a pyramid, started from the top, and picked each one of them off.”
After showing off her skills, her mother was so impressed she contacted the athletics director at Lee County High School, where Bullard would be attending in the fall. The director then put Bullard in contact with the high school’s rifle team head coach, who began having her work on basic shooting skills. Bullard competed for her high school team for three years and served as team captain. During her senior year of high school, she joined the Sir Walter Gun Club based in Creedmoor, N.C.
Bullard has practiced a lot on her own over her seven years of shooting, but it was her mentors, teammates, and even competitors who helped her become the shooter she is today. While in high school, Bullard competed at Camp Perry in the smallbore competition, and participated in a mentor match. Her mentor turned out to be Mike Anti, a four-time Olympic competitor, who is currently competing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. By working with Anti, Bullard improved her smallbore skills and was ready for competition when she came to NC State in 2006.
Arriving in Raleigh, Bullard became part of a team that had already developed strong relationships. It only took her a week to feel right at home with her teammates, and the relationship with them has helped Bullard progress into a more successful shooter. Last year, when only four people remained on the team, Bullard banded together with the other female team members, senior Noel Keck and fellow junior Katie Siegert.
“We had to room together every night we were on the road, so we became real close, real fast,” said Bullard. “We’re like Charlie’s Angels. All three of us are different, but we just work well together. All you have to do is ask for help, and everyone is more than willing.”
Even though Bullard has made her fair share of mistakes, including an accidental shot at the Great American Rifle Conference championships in which she scored a zero after her finger slipped, she learns and grows as a competitor from them.
Bullard also credits her improvement and success not only to her teammates and her coaches, but to her competitors as well. When the Pack travels to The Citadel, the two teams often go have dinner together, and even though they are competitors, the rival teams have become friends.
“[Shooting] is very competitive, but everyone is so willing to help,” said Bullard. “If there’s a problem, if you’re trying to get over a hump and you can’t figure out why something isn’t working, anybody, from your competitor to the person beside you, could say something like, why don’t you try clicking up, or move your arm forward.’ No one seems to feel like it’s a competition.”
The competition has become tougher for Bullard and the rest of the NC State rifle team. The Pack has competed in the Southeastern Air Rifle Conference for many years, and has won three conference titles, including the past two seasons. In Bullard’s freshman year, the Pack joined the GARC, a more competitive group of schools. A majority of the GARC schools have the advantage of newer facilities and automated targets, a very different situation from NC State. With the Pack only having four competitors this past season, there was no room for error in the GARC matches.
“For a team like us that scrapes by, we do really well in the SEARC because it’s all about doing the best that you can,” said Bullard. “In the GARC it’s doing better than everybody else.”
Bullard is looking forward to the new season beginning Oct. 4th with a match against Army and The Citadel in Charleston, S.C. Bullard, Keck, and Siegert will join up once again to lead the Pack to yet another successful season. Seven newcomers will be joining the team: sophomore transfer Meredith Manning, and freshmen Pierce Ellis, Rachel Jones, Christopher Melochick, Mark Nations, James Patterson, and Matthew George Yeatman round out the squad.
As to whether or not Bullard plans on competing in rifle after she graduates in two years, she’s uncertain. She is majoring in biological science and wants to pursue a physician’s assistant degree.
“I enjoy rifle, and I love the people involved in it,” said Bullard. “Not just within our conferences, but in the Sir Walter Gun Club and at the Holly Springs range. After I’m done with college whether I continue or not depends on where I’ll be and what I’ll be doing.”
One thing is for certain: Bullard loves her time here at NC State.
“My mom came here, and I’ve been a fan since I was little,” said Bullard. “I could do the Wolfpack symbol when I was little. I sang the fight song and had the cheerleader outfit. It’s just where I wanted to be. This is home to me. I love it here. Everything is perfect.”
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